FROM INDUSTRIAL MASS WARFARE TO DIGITALLY MEDIATED CONFLICT: THE WAR IN UKRAINE AS A TRANSITIONAL MODEL OF ARMED STRUGGLE

This article examines the war in Ukraine as a transitional case in the evolution of armed conflict, situated between industrial mass warfare and a digitally mediated model of combat. Using a historical-comparative framework, it distinguishes enduring industrial features, including attrition, logistics dominance, and massed fires, from emerging digital mechanisms that compress the sensor–decision–strike–assessment cycle. The analysis argues that the decisive novelty lies not in the mere presence of digital tools, but in the contestable integrity of information flows shaped by electronic warfare, deception, and network disruption. The article concludes that contemporary operational advantage increasingly depends on learning speed, network resilience, and the capacity to sustain decision-cycle performance under continuous interference.